The Return
by moonlite-n-roses
Summary: It’s a ranger reunion. Is it all good times? Or will something go wrong? An evil villan makes a comeback, and the rangers are once more called into battle, this time, it's personal. UPDATED 8.24.07
1. Chapter 1

**Title:** The Return

**Pairings:** I'm not giving them away.

**Raiting:** T

**Disclaimer: **Power Rangers belongs to Saban/Disney whoever. I don't make any money off this, don't sue the poor college student! The only character I own is Catlin.

**Summary**: It's a ranger reunion. Is it all good times? Or will something go wrong? What does a ranger-relative have to do with everything? I can't give a good summary without giving away any plot points.

**Author Notes:** This is my first PR fic. All I will give away is that all the Zeo Rangers, plus Justin will be in this fic, and maybe a few rangers from other seasons scattered here and there. Constructive criticism is welcomed.

Tanya Slone walked into Angle Grove Youth Center and looked around at the place she and her friends had haunted so many years ago as teenagers. It had been years since she'd been there, but now she was back; why she was back, she wasn't sure of. She looked around for the man who'd called her and smiled when she saw him seated at a table off to the side "Rocky!" She called to him as she walked over to the table.

Rocky DeSantos stood up and gave Tanya a hug "Hey… thanks for coming. I wasn't sure if you would be able to make it when I called." He took a step back to look at her. She hadn't changed much since the last time he'd seen her almost 5 years prior.

"Well, you said you had a surprise for me, I couldn't stand the suspense!" Tanya replied as she sat down. "So what is it?" She asked eagerly, curious as to what would cause him to want her to come all the way back to Angel Grove.

"Just wait and see, patience is a…" he trailed off when he saw the next member of their group walk in "Catherine!" he yelled, getting the attention of the woman who'd just walked into the Youth Center.

Catherine Hillard heard her name called and turned towards the voice. She'd been in London since shortly after graduation, and it had come as quite a shock to here Rocky's voice on the phone a few weeks ago, asking her to come back to Angel Grove for a surprise get together. "Rocky! You haven't changed a bit!" she yelled hurrying over to them. "Tanya!! It's so good to see you" she exclaimed hugging one of her best friends tightly. "I've missed you so much." 

Tanya smiled "Oh my god! Kat! I've missed you too" she said hugging her back. "I was so disappointed when you couldn't come out to New York last year."

Kat nodded "So was I." She turned to Rocky, "So Rocky, what is this surprise? You've never been able to keep a secret before, so spill."

Rocky laughed "Patience ladies patience!! I'm not going to spoil the surprise." He held his hands up in a defensive position, "I'm not aloud to tell. Sorry girls."

Tanya pouted, but was distracted by the sight of two young adults sparring across from them. "Is that…" she trailed off, tilting her head to the side as she studied the young male. 

"Justin?" Kat finished for Tanya also watching them, paying more attention to the girl than to Justin. "Wow… that girl sparring with him is good. Who is she?"

Rocky silently thanked the heavens that the girls were distracted from the question of the surprise because they were right, he DID have a hard time keeping secrets. "That is Justin, and his girlfriend Catlin. Catlin is one of my students at the dojo. She's better than we were at her age; I think it runs in her family." He added a bit mysteriously, not giving away her relationship to the girls.

Kat was about to question him further when she noticed two people walk into the Center. "Tommy! Jason!" She yelled, waving her hand to bring them over. She got up and ran over to them, hugging them both tightly. "Oh my god Tommy, you cut your hair!!" she exclaimed.

Tommy laughed "Yeah, I lost a bet a few years back. I didn't have a choice." 

"Besides dude, you look much better with it short" Jason added, an impish grin on his face.

"You HAVE to say that. It's your fault I had to cut it" Tommy bantered back good naturedly. "So… why are we here?" he asked walking with Kat and Jason over to the group.

"Rocky won't tell us" Kat said, giving Rocky her patented 'tell me or I'll hurt you' look.

Rocky gulped and checked his watch "Just relax guys, you'll find out in a bit" he said scooting away from Kat as she sat down.

"Wow… look at this, all of us together again. It's been years" Tommy said looking around at his group of friends. "I mean we've all seen each other here and there, but we haven't had a get together like this since we handed over our powers."

"We're not all here" Tanya said with a slight frown. "Adam's not here. He's dropped off the face of the planet. I haven't even gotten a letter from him in two years. I don't even know what he's doing. He never told me in any of his letters."

"He didn't tell me either. That is strange. I wonder where he is?" Kat said, pondering that question aloud. The others all expressed there wonder as well, since they hadn't been told either. "What about you Rocky?" Kat asked, noticing he was the only one who'd remained quiet.

"You know don't you?" Tanya accused, leveling her own stare on Rocky. "Where is he Rocky Desantos!"

Rocky gulped again "I… um… well…" he stuttered, shifting in his seat. He looked up and smiled. "Guys…"

Tanya looked up and gasped "It's…"

"Uncle Adam!!! You're back!!" A loud cry cut Tanya off and a blur from the sparring mat tackled the uniformed figure.


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note:** This chapter is mostly 'yay! Adam's back' but it needed to be done to move the story along, so if it seems like filler, my apologies. There are a few plot points in here.

Tanya looked back at Rocky "Adam was in the military! Why didn't he tell us?" She asked, raising her eyebrow at him before turning back to watch Adam's reunion with his niece. "Wait a minute, I thought Adam's only niece lived in Europe. Isn't Adam's brother in the Navy or something?"

Rocky shook his head "Catlin's parents died in a plane accident 6 years ago. Adam's had her ever since. Well, Adam and his parents since he was already in the military when he got custody of her."

"That's so sad" Tanya said softly, "But I think Adam would be a good parent" she added with a smile.

"Adam's… Wow" Kat said smiling as Adam and Catlin headed their way. "Adam! It's so great to see you," she said as she got up to give Adam a hug.

"You too Kat," he said returning her hug. "I didn't know you guys were going to be here."

"Rocky called us here, you're our surprise" Tanya replied, also giving Adam a big hug. "Why didn't you tell us Sweetie?" She asked softly. "I thought you fell off the face of the planet! You didn't write!"

"I did fall off the face of the planet. I'm sorry" Adam replied hugging her back tightly.

Catlin sat down in Tanya's seat and whispered to Rocky and Kat "Is that Tanya? The one Uncle Adam's compared every other woman he's EVER dated too?"

Kat laughed "Has he really?" At Catlin's nod she shook her head, "Well, that is Tanya." 

Catlin smiled, "Uncle Adam's right, she's gorgeous." She looked up and her grin got even bigger "Hey Justin."

"Hey sweetheart, did you still want to go grab dinner?" 

Catlin nodded "Yeah, just let me say good bye to my uncle" she replied going

over to Adam and Tanya. "Uncle Adam, I'm going to go grab a bite to eat with my boyfriend, I'll be back in a bit" she kissed his cheek and ran off with Justin.

Adam nodded "Okay, bye hon…" he trailed off "Rocky… why is she leaving with Justin?"

Rocky laughed "It's a funny thing… ya know…" he stuttered. "Umm… Justin's her boyfriend." He looked everywhere but at Adam as he said that.

"Justin? Catlin' is dating Justin! Why didn't you tell me? Why didn't she tell me? Justin's like… 4 years older than she is!" Adam exclaimed.

Tommy couldn't help it; at that point he started laughing. He choked it down once Adam leveled his gaze on him. "Sorry bro, but you sound just like a dad when you do that. It's funny!"

Kat reached across the table and smacked him "Stuff it you." She looked at Adam "I'm sure he'll treat her like gold, after all, if he hurts her, he DOES have you to contend with."

Rocky nodded "Yeah! Besides… if he hurts her, she'll just beat the living hell outta him. She's THAT good."

Tanya smiled "Adam, this is Justin we're talking about. He was a power ranger. He's got good intentions I'm sure" she said softly, steering him over to the table.

"He's also a 21 year old boy" Adam grumbled but sat down and took his hat off.

"So, how long are you home for this time?" Rocky asked curiously.

Adam smiled "I'm home for good Rocko, my 7 years are up. I decided not to reenlist."

Rocky let out a whoop and hugged Adam tightly "Yes!!! Thank god! You know Catlin is going to be thrilled Adam."

Adam nodded "Yeah, it's been a hard couple of years for her since I've been gone."

"Where were you stationed at?" Tanya asked.

"Afghanistan in 2002, and multiple tours over in Iraq," Adam replied running a hand over his shortly cropped hair. "I'm glad to be home."

Tanya gasped slightly and hugged him again "I'm glad you are too. I can't believe you didn't tell anybody!"

Jason nodded "Yeah, why didn't you tell any of us bro? You know we'd of supported you."

Tommy agreed "Yeah, I mean, we fought aliens together, did you think we'd object to you going into the army?"

Adam shook his head "Ooh no, that wasn't my reason at all. I didn't think you guys would object I knew you guys would support me. I just didn't want anybody to worry about me."

"Too late" Tanya and Kat replied together.

Adam made a face at them "I'm sorry girls."

Rocky looked at the girls and decided that Adam needed a rescue before the wrath of the former pink and yellow rangers let loose. "Hey guys, since we're all here, why don't we go out and grab a bite to eat and just get caught up."

Tommy nodded "Yeah, come on girls, Adam's home, he's safe, what more can we ask for?"

Tanya and Kat looked at each other and nodded "Fine" Kat agreed for them.

Meanwhile, in a remote cave somewhere in the mountains around southern China, a man worked furiously in a chemistry lab, mixing chemicals and herbs together. As he dropped the last herb in, the mixture hissed and turned a violent shade of red. "Finally, it's finished." He hissed and drank the potion down quickly. "Ahhh!!" he cried clutching his stomach as his body warped and twisted into its new shape.

Finally, after an hour of aftershocks his body was completely changed and he stood up. "I'm back!!" he cackled. "Those power punks will pay for what Zordon did to me!" He walked out of the cave and brandished his staff into the sky. "I will destroy earth!" He yelled as he vanished in a red flash of light.

**Author's Note2:** E-cookies to anybody who guesses the villain.


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Note:** Well, here we have the big, oooh evil bad guy is back chapter. Shall we find out what he's up to? Read on and see. 

Lord Zedd walked into the throne room of his castle on the moon. "Finally, I'm back where I belong. Now… minions" he branded his staff into the air "Goldar!! Return!"

In a flash of light, Goldar appeared in front of him "Master! It's so good to be back." He knelt before Zedd. "What do you wish of me?"

"Go to the remains of the Command Center, those fools left the Zeo Crystal buried there. Find it, and bring it to me. If you don't have the crystal…" Zedd growled at Goldar, "Don't bother returning!"

"Yes Lord Zedd, I shall not fail you." Goldar replied as he arose and disappeared from sight. 

"You'd better not" Zedd growled after Goldar disappeared. "Now… where is my beautiful empress" he wondered aloud as he scanned the earth for her. "Ah-ha… there she is." He said as he disappeared from the castle to collect his bride.

Meanwhile Adam and Catlin were sparing at the youth center. "You've gotten good" Adam said as he ducked a flying kick from her. "I'm proud of you." 

"Yeah, well I had to do something to keep my mind off of missing you." She replied as she parried punches from him. "I'm glad your home" she replied as she caught him with a sweep of her leg and pinned him.

"So am I Kitty… so am I" Adam said with a smile as he pushed her off him and jumped up. "I'll get to see you graduate this year." 

Catlin nodded "Yup, that makes me happiest!" She said as she hugged him. "Soo… about Tanya" she smiled innocently.

"What about her?" He asked as he tossed her a bottle of water and wrapped his towel around his neck.

"She's here… you're here. You obviously still like her. Make a move" Catlin told him as she sat down at a table near the sparing mat.

"It's not that easy!"

"Bullshit! You're a chicken!" Catlin taunted him.

Adam raised his eyebrows at her "You shouldn't swear."

"Avoidance!!! You are totally chicken!" Catlin laughed. She looked up and smiled "Oooh hi Tanya, Kat."

"Hey Catlin, why's Adam a chicken?" Tanya asked with a giggle.

"Because he won't… mmmph!" Catlin started to say as Adam clamped a hand over her mouth. "Mmmmphmph!" Cat exclaimed behind his hand.

Adam smiled "Nothing, she's just being ya know, a typical teenager" he said quickly, though a blush was clearly evident on his cheeks.

Kat smiled "Sure she was. Anyway, we came by to see if you guys wanted to go to the beach. Tommy and Jason are bringing a grill. We can make a day out of it."

"Sure… we'd love to, right Kitty?" Adam took his hand off of her mouth and gave her a 'stuff it' look.

Catlin nodded "Sure, just let me tell Justin to meet us there, okay?"

"Of course, I think Rocky was going to call him anyway."

"Excellent!" Catlin squealed happily. She got up and ran off towards the shower room.

"You too Adam, you stink" Kat said with a laugh, ducking the towel Adam sent her way as he stood up and headed for the shower.

Tanya watched him walk off, his camo pant hanging low on his hips. "My god, he's still as sexy as ever!" she exclaimed, covering her mouth when she realized she'd said that aloud.

Kat laughed "Oh definitely, the boy still has it. Soo…you're here, he's here" she trailed off, wiggling her eyebrows.

"What? So what if we're both here?" Tanya asked biting her lip.

"So ask the boy out for goodness sakes!!!" Kat exclaimed. "Or at least flirt with him and let him know you're still interested."

"Shut UP" Tanya said smacking her friend on the shoulder.

Rita Repula, or Repulsa as she was once known as, was in her garden tending to her flowers when a flash of light appeared in front of her and Lord Zedd stepped out of it. "Oooh Rita. I'm back!"

Rita blinked away the blind spots from her eyes and when she heard his voice, she put her hands on her hips. "What? I don't understand… Zordon's wave, we were freed!"

"Freed? You mean trapped! Zordon's wave trapped us in those vial human bodies like we once were millenniums ago. I found away to change myself back to my true form!" Zedd said angrily. "Now, I can change you back too my precious, and once again we can conquer earth!"

"No! I don't want to go back!" She screeched at him. "I'm happy to be free of the evil curse my father placed upon me!"

"You don't mean that!! You'll come to your sense when you get back to the moon!" Zedd replied, brandishing his staff at her.

"Oooh no you don't!" She raised her hands at him and a shield appeared, blocking Zedd's attempt at spelling her back to evil. "Now get out of here Zedd, you should know by now, you'll never defeat the forces of good." She pushed her hands away from her and an energy wave blasted Zedd of his feet.

Zedd picked himself up "Just remember, Lord Zedd grants NO mercy to those who oppose him. When you a begging for forgiveness after I conquer the Earth, I will destroy you." He disappeared in a flash of light once again.

"No good can come of this" Rita said to herself as she dusted her hands off. "I'm just glad that shield held out. I guess I'm not as rusty as I thought I was" she bit her lip. "I've got to make a phone call." She said as she headed into the house.

**Author's Note2:** Let me explain the Rita thing. I thought the whole Rita Mystic Mother angle in Mystic Force was bullshit. The timing didn't match up; they just did that to have an excuse for the footage of Machiko Soga from Magiranger. I didn't like it, so for this story, it didn't happen and Rita just settled in on earth and changed her name to Repula to make it sound less sinister.


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Note:** Umm… I got nuthin'…. Read on.

**Author's Note2:** Oooh I DO got something! Thank you to everybody who's reviewed, I never realized how much knowing people loved your story, encourged you to write more, faster.

Catlin was sunning herself on the beach, watching the guys playing volleyball. Kat and Tanya were lying on either side of her. "Ya know, they are really show offs aren't they?" She commented to both of them after watching Tommy make a spectacular, diving save for the ball.

Kat laughed, "Oh yes, they are definitely show offs, I remember in high school they used to try to one up each other ALL the time."

"But they look so good doing it, so we let them get away with it" Tanya added. As Catlin laughed Tanya noticed a flash of light at Catlin's throat. She lifted herself up more and saw that it was an oddly shaped crystal shard that flashed different colors as the sun shown upon it. "That's a pretty necklace Catlin, where did you get it?"

Catlin brought a hand up to the crystal and smiled "I've had it for years, since right before my parents died" she replied, fingering the shard carefully. "I've never taken it off."

Kat peered around her to get a glimpse of it "It's gorgeous" she said as she reached out to touch it, shivering slightly as her finger touched the crystal. It was familiar to her, she just couldn't figure out why it was so familiar. "Was it a gift from your parents?"

Catlin fidgeted slightly and was saved from answering it when the volleyball landed in her lap, causing her to jump up. "Hey guys! Watch it" she said tossing it to Justin.

"I'm sorry sweetheart" Justin said blowing her a kiss.

Adam groaned at that and put his hands to his face "Justin and my niece… man!"

Tommy laughed and patted him on the back "It's okay bro, just remember, he's a good guy."

Goldar returned to the moon, kneeling before Lord Zedd "Master! I've returned, and I have the Zeo Crystal!" He cried, presenting it before him.

"Finally Goldar, you've managed to do something right!" Zedd remarked, picking up the Zeo Crystal "Now… I can harness this Crystal and the Earth will be mine!!"

"But Master! The Zeo Crystal's power was depleated when the rangers gained their Turbo Powers, how will you harness its power?" Goldar asked curiously.

"Fool! Just because the Crystal was depleated, doesn't mean it can't be recharged. I'll recharge it with my power, and the Zeo Crystal will be more powerful than ever!" Zedd replied, looking down at Goldar like he was a moron, which for all intents and purposes, he was.

"Brillant Master! Soon you shall rule the world, then… the Universe!" Goldar cried, brandishing his sword above his head.

"Yes Goldar, soon… it shall all be mine!"

That night Catlin' lay in bed dreaming, a familiar sort of dream that she'd been having for the last 1o years. The crystal shard of her necklace glowing luminescent in the darkness.

_Catlin stood in ready, her body naturally taking a fighting stance. She closed her eyes and let her other senses take over as she waited for her attacker. _

_Suddenly a figure came out of the darkness, a flying kick that she easily avoided. He continued to attack her, punching and kicking, backing off to circle her before attacking again from another direction._

_Catlin defended herself valiantly and on the last attack, grabbed the leg of her attack her and dragged it across her body, causing him to go crashing to the ground. "Got ya." _

_Her attacker laughed and stood up, bowing to her "You've come a long way child. The time could very well be soon at hand that you will have to use all the skills you possess. Those you've learned here, and out in the real world." _

_Catlin returned the gesture and relaxed "I don't understand. What's going to happen?" _

_The hooded figure shook his head "I can't tell you, I don't know myself. I can just warn you of danger that may or may not come. I'm just preparing you." _

_Catlin sighed with frustration, "I hate not knowing things" she retorted, crossing her arms. _

_"You think I'm any different?" her astral mentor asked. "I'm not all knowing you know, I'm just like you." _

_Catlin shook her head, "You're better than me." _

_He copied her head movement "No, I'm more experienced than you are, that is all." He sighed, "Just remember, never take your necklace off, HE gave it to you for a reason." _

_"What reason?!?!" she exclaimed. As her mentor opened his mouth she held up a hand "I know, I know, all things are revealed in time." _

_Her mentor laughed "Then why do you ask, if you already know the answer? Now go get a good night's sleep, and make sure your uncle and his friends are getting rest as well, they are going to need it." With that, he turned and walked away from her, lowering the hood covering his head, his blond-streaked hair blowing gently in the astral winds. _

_"What's my uncle got to do with this?!?!" Catlin called after him as he faded from view. "Dammit anyhow" she grumbled as she closed her eyes and released herself from the astral plain._

**Author's Note3:** Three guesses on whom her mentor is and the first two don't count. LOL


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's Note: **Wow, 5 chapters in 7 days, I'm proud of myself. LOL Anyway, read on.

The following day, Catlin and Justin were sitting at the Youth Center, having lunch. Catlin sighed, "I had another dream last night Justin," she said softly, Justin being her only confidant about the strange dreams she had, and even then, she didn't tell him everything.

"What happened this time? I mean, what did your weird sparing partner say?" Justin asked curiously.

"Just that the time was near at hand, and something big is going down. He also mentioned Uncle Adam and his friends." Catlin replied running a hand through her long, curly black hair.

Justin nearly choked on his juice, "He mentioned Adam? Specifically?"

Catlin nodded "Yes, he said and I quote, 'make sure you uncle and his friends are getting rest as well, they are going to need it'. I don't understand it! What does Uncle Adam have to do with this?"

Justin just shook his head "I dunno Kitty, but I bet your mentor said it for a reason, you'd better tell Adam and the others to keep rested." _Oh boy, this has something to do with us ranger-wise, I just know it, _he thought to himself.

Catlin nodded "I will, I promise."

Meanwhile, in his castle on the moon, Lord Zedd had finished his preparations and was about to start the ceremony to reenergize the Zeo Crystal. "Goldar, move back, it's time!" he cried, brandishing his staff towards the heavens. "Zeo Crystal, recharge and give me the power to harness your great energies!" He lowered his staff at the Zeo Crystal and with a giant thunderclap; a red bolt of energy hit the Zeo Crystal. "Yes! Yes!" he cackled.

"Master! I don't think its working" Goldar said, watching the energy running over the Crystal.

Just as Goldar said that, there was another roaring thunderclap and the energy that had been washing over the Zeo Crystal gathered at one point near the bottom of the crystal, then rushed back to Zedd, sending him flying into the wall. The Crystal hovered for a moment more, then dropped the floor and separated back into its 5 sub-crystals.

"What! What happened?!?" Zedd roared, picking himself up and walking over to the crystal. "No!! It broke apart, why did this happen? Goldar!!!" he yelled, leveling his gaze on the gold armored monkey. "Find out why this happened!"

Goldar moved over to the sub-crystals and poked them with his sword, when he wasn't attacked he knelt down and picked one up. "Master! There is a piece missing!" he said showing Lord Zedd the sub-crystal. Indeed, there was a hollowed out spot at the bottom.

"What? Look at the rest, quickly!" Zedd cried. "This could ruin everything!"

Goldar quickly picked up the remaining crystals, "Master, the missing piece crosses all 5 sub-crystals. It must be the reason why the Zeo Crystal wouldn't recharge."

"Fool!" Zedd said, kicking him. "I'm aware of that! How did this happen? Where is the missing piece?!?" He yelled out into the emptiness of space. "Goldar!! FIND IT!!" He roared.

"Yes Master," Goldar said, quickly disappearing out of sight.

On KO-35, Andros replayed the videomail he'd received one more time. "Now I've got a headache" he grumbled, shaking his head and rubbing one of his ears. He walked back towards the living area of his home and looked at his wife "Ashley? How would you feel about taking a trip? Going back to Earth to see your family? I know they'd love to see you, especially now that you're showing." He walked over and rubbed his wife's slightly protruding belly.

"I'd love to, but…" she stopped and raised her eyebrow. "Why? You're a pain the ass to convince to take a trip to Earth and now you want to go willingly. What's going on?"

"N…Nothing. I just figured…"

"Save it. What's the deal here Andros? Not another mission for Tommy?" Ashley asked, hoping it wasn't. She couldn't handle that now.

"No, Tommy knows nothing about this actually. It's just… part of an obligation I have to fulfill. I was charged with this before there was an us; I can't turn my back on this." Andros replied. "It's nothing dangerous" he added soothingly, _yet_ he thought to himself.

"Alright then, but don't think this is the end of the conversation mister. You are keeping something from me, and I WILL find out" she added firmly.

"Zordon help me" Andros muttered watching her head off to pack.

Back on earth, Catlin was watching Adam, Rocky, Jason, and Tommy sparing. She was amazed at the agility and talent they all possessed. "They are so good. It's like they know each others moves" she murmured in awe.

Kat laughed softly, "they do sweetie, they used to do this all the time back in the day."

Tanya groaned "Kat! Don't put it like that, 'back in the day'; you make us sound like old fogies!" She smiled as she watched Adam evade a combination attack by Jason and Tommy. "Ya know, I think Adam's just gotten better with age" she said with a sigh.

Catlin giggled, "You so are still jonesing for him" she teased. "You know, my uncle is still hot for you too."

Tanya blushed "Oh whatever, he is not. That was a long time ago" she said, sighing again.

"I'm not lying! He's still hot for you." Catlin told her with a smirk.

Just then the guys finished up "Hey Kat, Tanya, you guys want to go out tonight?" Rocky suggested. "There's a club in Stone Canyon that has an awesome DJ."

"Maybe you guys should just stay home" Catlin put in. "I mean… ya know, get some rest, keep your strength up and stuff" she said quickly.

"Umm… why?" Tommy asked, his eyebrows going up as he shared a look with the rest of the group.

"I… uhh…I" Catlin stuttered, looking to Justin who'd just walked in 'help me' she mouthed.

Justin looked around the group "Why don't we have a campfire tonight? There are acres of wooded area behind my house." He suggested. "We can bring some coolers or whatever out there and just kick back and relax?"

"That does sound nice" Adam put in, even thou he was perturbed by his niece's strange behavior.

"I like that idea better" Tanya agreed. While she wouldn't of minded going out to a club, she figured if Adam didn't want to go, then he wouldn't, and she wanted to spend as much time as she could with him.

Rocky shrugged "It's cool by me; we haven't had a good campfire in ages. I'll bring the smores fixin's" he said with a smile, causing everybody to laugh.

"Same ol' Rocky" Tommy said, shaking his head. "Well, let's meet at Justin's then tonight at sundown." He suggested. It was all agreed upon and everyone broke up to go there separate ways until later that night.

Catlin let out a sigh of relief as everyone left and leaned on Justin's shoulder "You are a genius baby." She leaned up and kissed his cheek.

"I know!" Justin said with a smirk. "Hey!" he exclaimed when Catlin smacked him.

"Let's go" she said pulling him out of the Youth Center, "I want some time alone with you before tonight."

**Author's Note2:** There you have it, another chapter. Hopefully the plot is coming together a little bit now. Let me know what you think guys.


	6. Chapter 6

**Author's Note:** An action chapter yay! Read on and see what happens…

Lord Zedd was keeping an eye on both Goldar and the ex-power rangers. He growled as he watched them have fun, laughing and eating around their campfire. "Gah! I hate fun!" he cried, brandishing his staff in front of him. "Let's see if they can still handle some old friends" he said aiming the staff towards earth. "Putties! Go!" he yelled as a bolt of power headed to earth.

Meanwhile, the rangers and Catlin were relaxing around the fire, enjoying the smores Rocky was doling out. They were oblivious to the shadows that moved through the woods and watched them. They were too busy having fun, remembering their past, and embarrassing both Rocky and Justin as much as possible.

As Justin complained about the unfairness, Catlin put a hand to his mouth. She'd heard a rustling in the woods behind the others and was peering off into the brush. "Quiet. I heard something" she said to Justin who was fidgeting behind her hand.

Adam turned around to face the woods "Probably just an animal" he said getting up to go check it out. Just as he stepped into the bushes, a kick to the stomach sent him flying back towards the campfire. "Or not," he panted, as the putties came into view. "Guys! Putties!" Adam cried getting to his feet.

Tommy, Jason, and Rocky jumped to their feet and ran over to Adam, helping him to his feet. "How did they get here?" Tommy asked incredulously as the putties began their attack. "Spread out guys" Tommy yelled, looking at Tanya, Kat, Justin and Catlin.

"What are these guys?" Tanya asked, dodging a punch and dealing the putty a kick of her own. "We've never fought these things before!"

"Before your time" Rocky replied, leveling a putty with a backwards clothesline.

"Guys! Aim for the Z" Jason yelled, kicking his putty in the chest, watching it disintegrate. "It still works!"

"Why are these things attacking us?" Catlin asked, flipping over one to land a flying kick to another. "What are these things?" She asked, watching it break apart. "They're… they're made of clay!" She gasped in astonishment.

Justin leveled three of them and looked around at the others, running over to get a putty off of Kat, who was cornered against a tree. "Guys! Is this a you know what related thing?" he asked, as he and Kat double kicked a troublesome putty.

"Yes… it is" Tommy replied, flipping a putty over and punching it hard in the chest.

Lord Zedd was watching the fight, "After all these years, they can still beat my putties" he cried angrily. "Even that civilian…" he trailed off, watching Catlin battle a group of three putties. "Impossible! Goldar!" he cried, waiting for him to appear. "Go to the putty battle, bring that civilian to me. She has the crystal! Go NOW!"

Goldar appeared at the battle and watched "Hi rangers!" he said launching a fire attack at Tommy and Jason, which just missed. "Did you miss me?" He asked, walking around the battle.

"What are you doing here?" Adam asked, kicking at him, a move Goldar evaded easily. Adam went flying when Goldar punched him, getting knocked into Rocky and causing him to go down as well.

"I came to collect something for my master" he replied, pushing putties out of the way and grabbed Catlin, who started screaming.

"Let her go!" Justin shouted, running for him.

"Justin! Don't!" Tommy yelled, trying to get to them as well, but he was stopped by the putties.

Goldar grabbed Justin by the arm, twisting him around and threw him to the ground. "Nice try brat, but what my master wants, my master gets." He cackled and vanished from view, Catlin still in his clutches. The putties vanished along with him.

"No! They took Catlin! That gold wizard of oz reject has Catlin!" Justin cried getting to his feet. "What are those clay-brains? Why'd they attack us? What do they want with Catlin?!" He said angrily.

"They were putties Justin, when Rita and then Zedd attacked Earth; they were using those clay foot patrollers. Think Piranhatrons." Tommy replied. "Is everyone okay?"

Adam was still on the ground, looking at the place Catlin and Goldar had vanished from. "Why the hell is he after my niece? She's a civilian! We're not even rangers anymore! Why are we a threat to him? Who's he working for this time?" Adam said in a calm and deadly tone.

Justin chewed on his lip "Guys, I have to tell you something. Catlin told me not to tell, but considering the circumstances, I think I need to." He waited until the others all gathered round him, and he began to tell them everything he knew about Catlin's dreams, her mentor, and everything her mentor had been telling her that she'd confided in him. "So, that's all I know" he finished, running a hand through his hair nervously.

"Who's her mentor? How do we know if we can trust this guy?" Adam said after Justin finished, clenching his fists in frustration.

"I believe I can answer that question my friends" a voice said from behind them, causing all of them to whirl around into fight stances. "I come in peace" the visitor replied, holding his hands up.

"Who are you?" Kat asked suspiciously, though she knew she recognized his face from somewhere.

"Andros!" Tommy and Adam replied at the same time. "What are you doing here?" Tommy asked, walking up and shaking his hand. "I wish you would have gotten here sooner."

"So do I my friends" Andros replied. He turned to Kat, Tanya and Rocky and gave them a slight head nod in greeting. "I'm Andros, Red Space Ranger. I am also the mentor Catlin spoke of."

"Wait what?" Adam said before anyone else could bombard Andros with questions. "Why? What does Catlin have to do with all of this? Who sent Goldar after her? What is going on?"

"Whoa! Adam, slow down" Rocky said, putting a hand on his friend's shoulder. "One question at a time," he looked at Andros, "Come sit down by the fire, and you can answer all our questions alright?"

Andros nodded, "Alright, I'll explain everything I can to you" he agreed, walking over to the fire and sitting down on a log. He took a deep breath and began to explain everything he could to the former rangers.

**Author's Note2:** Dun-dun!! Oh no! Zedd's captured Catlin! What will happen next? I hope this action chapter came out alright; I'm inexperienced writing something like this.

**Author's Note3:** Once again, thank you to everyone who's reviewed, if you haven't yet, please do. Let me know what you think. I'm all ears.


	7. Chapter 7

**Author's Note: **Explanations time! Yay!!! Everybody gets explanations, and everyone is still confused.

Andros finished explaining to the others why he was here, what Catlin had to do with this, and what he'd found out about Lord Zedd. He sat back and held his hands apart, "and that is everything I know." He put his hands down and waited for the eruption he knew was coming.

"So after we absorbed the Zeo power, the Zeo Crystal was buried, but before it was buried, Zordon decided to break a shard off the completed crystal and hide it, in case the crystal ever came into evil hands?" Tommy asked, running a hand over his spikes.

Andros nodded, "Yes, it was a safety precaution on his part."

"Then, when the rangers passed on their powers to T.J, Cassie, Carlos, and Ashley, Zordon was going to give it to one of us former rangers for safekeeping, but didn't want us drawn into any danger since the point of passing on the powers was to try to live normal lives. So he kept it safely hidden, until he was captured?" Rocky chimed in, looking deep in thought as he tried to understand all of this.

Andros again nodded, "Then after he got captured, he needed to make sure it was kept safe, so he sent me to retrieve it, while he went on an astral search for a keeper."

"Who happened to be Adam's niece?" Jason added. "But she was only a child then? How could Zordon trust someone so young?"

"It's the last place anyone would ever look for the crystal though Jason" Tanya put in, "I mean think about it, if a bad guy was looking for an important crystal, he'd think it was someplace heavily guarded, or with someone who was a strong warrior. No one would ever think a mere child would hold something of that importance."

Andros nodded "Tanya is correct, that and I think Zordon saw a potential for greatness in her, as well as a natural skill in defense."

"Getting back to the point" Kat interrupted, "So Zordon chose Catlin, and you delivered the crystal to her while she slept. Then you came to her in dreams to mentor her, why?"

"Obviously it was to make sure she kept the crystal with her always and to provide her with additional training in case the day came when someone came after her for the crystal…"

"Like now?" Adam put in, his jaw still tense as he contemplated the situation.

"Yes, like now. I was informed by someone on earth that Lord Zedd had found a way to return to his old form and was attempting once again to take over the earth." Andros watched Adam, "Your niece is a very strong and capable woman Adam; she will be okay."

"Why does Zedd even want her though? The crystal is buried underneath the old command center; he doesn't have it, does he?" Adam replied, as he stood up. He began to pace back and forth, frustrated at his inability to do anything to help her.

"I'm afraid that's why I didn't get here in time to help you with the putties. I stopped at the ruins of the command center, the crystal is gone. I believe Zedd has it, that's why he's kidnapped Catlin. He wants to recharge the crystal." Andros said gravely.

"So what are we gonna do about it?" Jason said as he stood up as well. "We can't just sit here and let it happen."

Catlin looked around her new surroundings; Goldar had placed her in a small cave-like cell with bars across the front. "What do you want with me?" She asked, glaring at the gold-plated monkey with wings.

"Lord Zedd wants you, so Lord Zedd shall have you" Goldar replied, facing her from the other side of the bars.

"I hate to break it to him, but I'm taken" she said hotly. She didn't think that was what the monkey meant, but her humor was keeping her sane at the moment.

"He doesn't want you like that, you filthy human, he wants your necklace. You would be wise to hand it over now" Goldar replied in a growl.

"I'd rather be a filthy human, then an oversized baboon with wings. I'll never give him my necklace, EVER!" She screamed the last word, causing Goldar to jump back. "So you take that to your Lord Zedd. My uncle will rescue me."

"That ex-power brat won't be able to save you. He's powerless now. He's JUST a human" Goldar replied, glaring her down. "You WILL hand over the crystal shard, or you will be destroyed." With that, he walked away from the cell, growling to himself about teenagers. "I hate em'"

"Uncle Adam, an ex-power brat? What does he mean by that?" Catlin asked pacing the cell. "Okay, think Kitty, you've gotta get yourself outta here. But how, you don't even know where HERE is" she sighed and punched the wall.

"That impertinent little brat! She thinks she can defy me!" Lord Zedd cried as Goldar reported back to him. "I'll fry that little brat up and take the necklace myself!" He got up off his throne and started walking towards the hallway that leads to the cells.

"Umm… uh… master…" Goldar stuttered, his eyes locked on the entrance of the throne room.

"What you imbecile? Spit it out Goldar, I haven't got all day."

"Zeddie!!!! I'm baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaacccck" A screeching voice came from the doorway.

**Author's Note2:** Guess whose back. Just in the nick of time to save Catlin from becoming fried kitty. Or to be pessimistic, just in the nick of time to help Catlin become fried kitty.


	8. Chapter 8

**Author's Note:** So, after too long a writing break for me, I finally have time to write another chapter. Here goes nothing, chaos and confusion go!! LOL 

"What are you doing here?" Zedd roared, brandishing his staff at her. "You refused me, witch."

"I know!! But Zeddie I was thinking, you're right; being evil is so much more fun than being a goody-two-shoes. So, please take me back Zeddie-kins, please" she cooed, walking up to him and touching his metal covered face.

"Ooh…" he chuckled as she 'caressed' his face. "Fine, but right now I'm busy, I need to fry me a brat to get the missing shard of the Zeo Crystal."

"Wait!! You can't just fry her up and take it from her!" Rita screeched, causing Goldar to jump back and away from her.

"Why not? What's a matter, I thought you were evil," Zedd retorted, his staff glowing at he stared at her.

"I am!" she cried back, "But just frying her up lacks creativity! It's too easy Zeddie, it's no fun!"

"Well, then what do YOU suggest then Rita," Zedd growled at her, though he did agree with her, it was just too easy.

"Torture her; get her to give it over willingly! Break her spirit. Let me do it" she cackled, grinning madly.

"Well then, get to it Rita." Zedd replied grudgingly. "Goldar, show her to the dungeons."

"Yes Master," Goldar replied, bowing to him and leading Rita out of the throne room.

Meanwhile, back on Earth, Tanya and Kat walked out of Adam's room and into the living room of his house. Tommy, Rocky, Justin, Jason, and Andros were sitting there. "Well?" Rocky asked, his voice full of concern for his best friend.

"We got him to sleep finally," Tanya said as she plopped down on the couch.

"Tanya got him to sleep, I just kept him from trying to leave and find away to the moon by himself," Kat added, also taking a seat.

"I can't believe Goldar just up and took Catlin! This sucks," Justin said, punching a couch pillow repetitively. "We're powerless to get her back!"

"What about the Zeo powers?" Jason asked, getting up to pace the room. "Didn't you just abandon them to take the Turbo powers?"

Tommy shook his head, "No, we USED the Zeo powers to create the Turbo powers. Our Zeo powers were drained to formulate the Turbo powers, which got destroyed by Divatox."

"Dammit! But we got our powers back for the mission to the Moon," Jason replied.

"What mission to the moon," Kat asked, raising her eyebrows.

Tommy gave Jason a look that read 'nice one, dumbass.' "We'll explain it later, but the only reason we were able to pull off that morph, at least for those of us before Andros, was because Hayley was able to tap into the morphing grid and recharge our morphers for one single morph."

"So if we'd of had to morph again…" Jason trailed off.

"We'd of been screwed and probably in as much pain as Adam was after the stunt he pulled saving Carlos's ass," Tommy finished for him.

"Damn," Jason grumbled and looked around at the others, all who were wearing mostly clueless expressions. "We'll explain everything when we get the time, I promise."

"You'd better," Kat and Tanya replied in unison, both wearing cross expressions on their faces.

As the others continued to plot in the living room, Adam tossed in his sleep, mumbling incoherently until he finally went still, having settled down enough for true sleep to take him.

_"Where am I?" Adam asked, looking around at the misty plain he was standing upon. "Hello?" he called out, hearing a faint echo in the distance. _

_"Uncle Adam" Catlin called, running up to him. "Yes, it worked!" she exclaimed happily, hugging him tightly. _

_"Catlin?" he asked, stunned for a moment, "Catlin!" he hugged her back just as tightly. "Are you okay? Where are we? Has Zedd hurt you?" He began rambling questions off to her. _

_"Uncle Adam, calm down, I'm fine. I'm in a dungeon on the moon, and some gold guys with wings…" _

_"Goldar"_

_"Whatever! Listen, he said Zedd wants my crystal shard; I can't give it to him though. I won't give it to him," Catlin said firmly. _

_"Catlin listen to me, just give it to him, I don't want you to get hurt. This isn't your fight okay. You're innocent," Adam replied just as firmly._

_"No! I'm not an innocent, not since that floating head guy gave me the crystal, it's my responsibility. Look, I can't let him down, I just can't." _

_"Zordon wouldn't want you to die for this Catlin," Adam cried shaking her shoulders. _

_"Stop it!" she said pushing him back a bit. "Uncle Adam, if you were in my shoes, what would you do?" She asked, a stubborn gleam in her eyes. _

_"You aren't me!" Adam retorted. "It's not the same thing, you aren't a…" he trailed off._

_"A power brat," she finished for him. "You've got some explaining to do, but that can wait, look I can't hold this much longer. I got some information for you from the floating head,"_

_"Zordon."_

_"Whatever! Look, he told me to tell you," she took a deep breath. "Things aren't always as they seem. The strongest foe you'll ever have to face is yourself. Help will come from your fellows." _

_"What does that mean?" Adam asked, his voice full of frustration, and a feeling of helplessness suddenly washed over him. _

_"I don't know! Everything is revealed in time, that's what they always tell me," she grumbled. She faded slightly, "They're trying to wake me up; I've got to go. I love you Uncle Adam, don't do anything stupid to try and rescue me." She hugged him tightly and kissed his cheek. "Tell Justin I miss him," she added as she backed up and faded from view. _

_Adam spun around, "Catlin? Catlin!" he yelled, frantic to find her again. Then he too faded from view. _

**Author's Note2:** There you have it, Chapter 8. This was kind of filler I guess you could call it, but the advice is important and needed to be told. I apologize with how long it took for me to get the time and energy to write this. School is kicking my ass, but I'm in the process of rearranging things so hopefully I will have time to write more.


	9. Chapter 9

**Author's Note:** The ideas just kept pouring in after I finished Chapter 8 and they wouldn't leave me alone until I got them down. So here we go. Just a warning, this chapter has something seemingly bad happen to Catlin.

The following morning Adam awoke before everyone else and quickly started rousing the rest of the rangers, who had all decided to crash at his place to keep him and probably Justin from doing something phenomenally stupid like attempting to rescue Catlin on their own. He waited until they were all walking around with cups of coffee before spilling the contents of the dream he'd had the night before.

"So we know Catlin is okay, well that's good," Tommy replied after Adam was finished talking.

"If that stupid monkey lays one hand on her," Justin threatened.

"Don't worry, we'll get her back, we just need to figure out how," Kat cut Justin off, putting a hand on his shoulder. "How do we get her back?"

"We also need to concentrate on getting the Zeo Crystal away from Zedd as well," Andros put in. "If he harnesses that power," he let the rest of his sentence go, they all knew the power of the Zeo Crystal, and what would happen.

"How are we even going to get to the Moon? It's not like we can teleport, or we have Zords that can take us there," Rocky put in, looking around the room.

"Wait! Andros you have the Megaship don't you?" Justin asked, his eyes lighting up.

"Of course," he held up his hand to stop Justin from saying anything else, "and we will use it to go to the Moon, but we can't just fly up to the moon and go charging in there without a plan, out of all of us, only I can morph."

"Okay, so at least we know the HOW of getting to the moon, now we just need a plan," Jason said thoughtfully as he sipped his coffee.

"Why don't you puny mortals surrender now so my master doesn't have to work to hard to destroy you!" A voice from out of nowhere yelled, and then Goldar appeared in front of them.

"NEVER!" They all shouted back in unison and leapt up to fighting stances.

"Fools!" He roared at them, setting down a holographic disk on the coffee table. "This is what happens when you defy Lord Zedd and his Empress!" He yelled before disappearing as quickly as he appeared.

"What was that about? Goldar running off before a fight," Tommy said once they'd all relaxed slightly, standing down their guard.

"He left this," Tanya said picking up the shiny disk, "What is it?"

"May I?" Andros asked, holding out his hand. After Tanya gave him the disk he held it up into the sunlight, "It's a hologram disk," he set it down again on the coffee table, moving it slightly so that a ray of sunshine coming in from the window would land on it. The disk glowed brightly and then a transparent screen popped up, and they all fell silent.

_"Give us the crystal shard, girl, NOW!!" Rita Repulsa screamed menacingly at Catlin, from inside the dungeon cell. _

_"Never you nasty witch!" Catlin screamed defiantly as she tried to make a dash for the dungeon door, but was stopped short by two putties who appeared out of nowhere and dragged her back to the center of the cell. "I'll never give it to you!" _

_"Suit your self child," Rita said wickedly, lowering her 'new and improved' magic staff at her. "This is your last chance," she added with an evil smirk. As Catlin screamed her response, a bright blue bolt of power erupted out of the staff and hit Catlin head on. _

"Catlin!" Adam and Justin yelled at the same time, their eyes wide in shock as they watched the bold envelope her.

Kat's hand flew over her mouth as she watched Catlin struggle, her screams shattering the silence that hung about the rangers. "Oh my god," she whispered softly.

_Rita continued to torture her, laughing at the sound of her prisoner screaming, watching as she struggled helplessly against the putties. "Give up the crystal!" She screeched. She withdrew her staff, and the putties let Catlin fall to the floor, still twitching from the aftereffects of the blast. _

_Catlin was silent for a few moments as she stopped twitching. She rolled over onto her side and looked up at Rita, "Never, you despicable witch!" _

_"We'll see about that my dear," Rita cackled as she stepped out of the dungeon, leaving Catlin lying in a heap in the middle of the floor. _

The hologram shut itself off and evaporated from the coffee table, leaving a burned circle in its place. Silence hung around the rangers still, until Adam got up, "I'm getting her back, and I'm getting her back now," he said in a deadly calm voice as he got up and headed for the door.

Andros was shaken from his stunned silence and ran over to Adam, "Adam no, we can't do anything yet," he said stepping in front of him.

"The hell we can't," Justin piped up, intent on following Adam. "We're not letting them do that to her!"

"We don't have the ability to help her yet!" Andros reiterated firmly. "If you go now you'll die!"

"We can't leave her there!" Adam cried, his anger and frustration at the images he'd just seen causing him to lose control of his temperament. He swung at Andros, who anticipated the punch and ducked.

Tommy, Jason, and Rocky were up in a heartbeat to separate Adam from Andros, pulling him back into the living room and wrestling him onto the couch. "Adam, enough! Adam!" Tommy said struggling with him.

Tanya got up and ran over to them, putting her hands on Adam's cheeks, "Adam! Adam! Stop it! This won't help her. You can't help her if you're dead!" she said firmly, locking eyes with him. "Adam, please," she added in a softer tone.

Adam stopped struggling, "Let me go," he told the guys.

"Adam, we don't…"

"Let. Me. Go." He said again, looking at each of them in turn. "I'm not going anywhere."

Tanya looked at the three of them and nodded for them to let him go, after he situated himself on the couch, Tanya sat next to him, taking his hand in both of hers and holding onto it tightly.

Meanwhile, Andros and Kat had gotten Justin to sit down again, but he looked like he was about ready to burst. Seeing Catlin, _his _Catlin like that, it made his blood boil. "So what are we going to do?" He said in a tightly controlled voice.

**Author's Note2:** We're getting into the thick of things now.


	10. Chapter 10

**Author's Note:** Help comes from your fellows. If your fellows can get the help under control.

As everyone sat there, contemplating Justin's question, what exactly _were _they going to do, a frantic knocking on the door startled all of them. "Dr. O! Dr. O! Dr… AHHH!!" a loud, sonic scream practically shook the house, knocking the door down.

"What the hell?!?" Adam cried, jumping up with the rest of them into defensive stances.

"Kira?" Tommy asked, staring at the door in disbelief.

Ethan stepped inside, pulling Kira in along with him, her hands firmly clamped over her mouth. "Dr. O, we've got a problem," he said looking pale, his arms glowing blue.

"Dr. O.I.can't.stop.moving.I.can't.turn.this.off," Conner said as he ran in the door, a blur of red. "Help.Help.Help."

"What is that?" Tanya asked trying to watch the blur moving around the house.

"What is going on? We lost our powers, and where is Trent?" Tommy asked looking around the room.

"I'm here Dr. O; I just can't get visible again. Our powers are back, and completely out of control, Hayley didn't know what to do, so she sent us here," Trent's voice came from somewhere near Rocky, causing him to jump away looking around wildly.

"Dr. O it all started with this dreaaahhhh!!!" Kira started to say, before another ptera scream came out, knocking Adam and Andros off their feet, "Sorry!" she cried before clamping her hands over her mouth once again.

"What a set of lungs," Andros groaned pulling himself up, and then offering Adam a hand up. "Tommy, I take it these are the Dino Thunder Rangers?"

"Yes, they are, but all our powers were used up against Mesogog, and that was 2 years ago," Tommy replied watching Conner running around in a blur. "Sorry Conner," he said with a little remorse before he crouched and the next time Conner ran past, he swept his leg out, knocking Conner over, causing him to fall and come to a 'crashing' halt.

"Oww, what the… hey, I stopped! Thanks Dr. O" Conner said from his prone position on the floor.

"Don't move," Tommy told him, before looking at the others, minus Trent who he couldn't see. "Kira," he held his hand up as she started to say something, "Stop! Don't say anything, Ethan, just," he shrugged, "Don't hit anything, and Trent, just stay where you are."

"Obviously the power is back, is yours?" Kat asked walking over to him, carefully stepping over Conner.

Tommy pulled his gem out of his pocket, out of habit he carried it with him, he closed his eyes for a second, and opened them, "Nope, I'm still here," he said with a sigh.

"Now, Ethan, you mind explaining what happened?"

Ethan sat down on the arm of the couch, "I had a weird dream last night."

"You aren't the only one," Adam mumbled, wincing when Tanya smacked his arm. "Sorry, go on," Adam told Ethan with a half smile.

"Thanks," Ethan replied with a slight glare, "Dr. O, you were fighting some weird guy, it looked like his skin was burned off, and he had a metal face with his brains showing."

"Lord Zedd," Adam growled slightly.

"Anyway," Ethan continued, "We were trying to help you, but all these clay looking creatures were holding us back, and then he," Ethan faltered, shaking his head, the dream still vivid in his mind.

"He destroyed you Dr. O" Trent's voice picked up the story. "We couldn't do anything to stop him, that's when we all woke up. I was with Kira," he paused, the embarrassment clear in his tone of voice, having to admit that to his mentor. "She was screaming your name, and all of a sudden erupted in a ptera scream. I sat up and tried to put my hand over her mouth, she freaked out because, well, I'm invisible."

"I had that dream too, and when I woke up, I had to make sure you were okay, I was going to run over and check on you, and well, I started running and I couldn't stop," Conner said from the floor, he didn't want to chance getting up and starting it all over again.

Tommy sighed, running a hand over his hair, "You guys haven your gems on you right?" He asked, getting nods from everyone and a verbal 'yes' from Trent. "Do you guys have your Dino bracelets with you?"

Kira nodded, Conner raised his arm up to show Tommy his, and Ethan and Trent both responded verbally, "Good" Tommy said pausing to think about it, "Put you're gems into the bracelets," he told them.

"How?" Ethan asked grabbing his gem out of his pocket.

"You mean like you did when you became visible when you first became the black ranger?" Conner asked.

Tommy nodded, "Exactly like that, the gems going into the bracelets should harness their energy, and hopefully you should regain control of your powers."

Conner stood up slowly, "Hope this works," he looked at the others "Ready?"

"Ready," Ethan and Trent replied, while Kira nodded.

They held their wrists out, slamming their gems down onto the bracelets, and in a flash of light, the gems were absorbed into the bracelets. "Hey, everything's back to normal!" Conner exclaimed happily.

"Yes, no more glowing arms!"

"I can talk again with out breaking things!! Again, I'm really sorry you guys," she said apologizing to Adam and Andros.

Trent reappeared next to Rocky, who let out a yelp and stumbled backwards into a chair, landing on his behind. "A little warning next time!" Rocky yelped.

Trent shrugged, "Sorry dude," he replied with a little grin, amused at his antics before walking over to Ethan, Conner and Kira. "So Dr. O, any ideas on WHY this happened?"

"Betcha it's got something to do with Rita and Zedd," Adam said as he walked over to Tommy. "I mean, that dream, there is no reason they should be having that dream."

Tommy nodded, "Adam's right, I'm sure it has something to do with them."

"But I thought they were destroyed," Kira said looking over at them in confusion.

"Well they're back, and they're up to their old tricks" Tommy told the four newcomers.

"Well then, it looks like we got our powers back just in the nick of time," Conner said determinedly.

"Just in the nick of time is right! It's those things from our dreams!" Kira cried, pointing out the door. "Look!" Outside, a group of putties had appeared and were swarming towards the broken front door.

**Author's Note2:** Just wanted to thank everybody who's reviewed this story. It means a lot to me. This is probably the halfway point of the story, and I thank everybody who's stuck with the story.


	11. Chapter 11

**Author's Note:** I'm sorry it's been awhile guys, but life hit me with a ton of bricks. No fears though, I haven't given up on any of my stories and I have a few new ones in the planning stages. Anyway, enjoy.

* * *

Rita watched as the battle raged on earth, "Zeddy!!! Those brats are beating up the putties again! Those mini-brats are too!! Do something!!!" She screeched at him.

"Why should I do anything else for YOU Rita? I conjured that dream for you, intending to drive Tommy's little protégés mad and it didn't work, they got control of their powers back. I should just kill that brat in the dungeon, charge the Zeo Crystal and be done with all of them."

"Zedd! I told you, you can't take the crystal from her. It has protections on it, she has to give it up willingly! We don't know what will happen if you kill her to get the crystal shard!" Rita retorted, glaring at him.

"Well what should we do then Rita? Since _you _seem to have all the answers," Zedd sneered at her.

"Send down more warriors, order them to kidnap those mini-brats and Kat, I think I reunion with our pretty kitty is in order," she replied, a sinister grin on her face.

"Fine" Zedd grumbled, "Tengas!! I summon you! Go!!" He shouted, brandishing his staff towards earth. "Do as I command you!"

As the battle raged in front of Adam's home, the Dino rangers were proving an invaluable asset, using the power of their gems to make easy work of the Putties.

"Ya know," Adam huffed as he jumped to his feet after being knocked to the ground by a sneak attack, "I wish we'd of had those abilities unmorphed back when _we _were rangers."

"We did, remember the ninjetti powers?" Rocky reminded him ducking a putty.

"I count that as morphed," Adam retorted.

"Ewww!! What are those guys?!?! Kira screamed, pointing at the sky. "They've got a feathered face," she said making a disgusted face.

Ethan ducked one of the flying foot soldiers, "They've got a funny beak too," he commented before being tackled by two of them.

"Watch the Tengas!!" Tommy yelled at _his _rangers vaulting over a Tenga to rescue Ethan.

"Uglier than Piranhatrons, that's for sure," Tanya said laying out the attacking Tenga with a roundhouse kick, "Tengo-bye bye," she said with a satisfied smirk.

As the battled continued, the rangers soon realized that no matter how many Tenga they knocked down, they never seemed to be getting the upper hand, and the rangers were beginning to tire out.

"Dr. O there's too many of them," Ethan cried as he blocked yet another attack, "I'm running out of energy."

"Just keep going Ethan, we've got too," Tommy said taking down the Tenga for Ethan, but even Tommy was showing fatigue.

"Hello Rangers!!" A sinister voice called as he appeared behind Katherine, "Kat, my masters have requested you to join them." Goldar wrapped his arm around Kat's neck, "Tengas, get the mini-brats and get back to the moon NOW," he ordered vanishing with Katherine.

"Kat!!" Tommy cried out reflexively.

"No!!" Adam yelled taking his frustration out on the closest Tenga.

"Let me go!! Dr. O!! Trent!!" Kira called as a trio of Tengas grabbed her and began to drag her away.

"Kira!!" Trent and Conner both yelled at the same time, Trent going camouflage and Conner putting on a final burst of speed trying to get to her. Suddenly in a flash of red-tinged lightening, the Tengas, Conner and Kira all vanished.

"Kira!! Conner!!" Tommy ran for the spot and stopped, "Oh man, this is not good. Trent!! Trent!!" he yelled, turning around to scout for him, "Trent, drop the cover, where are you?"

"Dr. O, I think he went with them," Ethan said limping over to Tommy.

Andros walked carefully over to Tommy, "What are we going to do now?"

"This has to end soon, first Catlin, now Kat, Kira, Conner and Trent. He's not going to get away with this," Tommy brooded angrily.

Meanwhile, on the moon, Goldar held Kat firmly in front of Lord Zedd and Rita. "Let me go," she cried, struggling against him. She glared at Rita and Zedd, "You know you'll never get away with this, we WILL stop you."

"No my dear kitty-kat, you will HELP us," Zedd said with a chuckle. "Just like you helped us before," he added, watching her eyes go wide.

"I'll never serve you again, NEVER!" Kat screamed, struggling harder to get away from Goldar.

"Who said you have a choice?" Rita asked, a smirk playing across her lips as she lowered her staff at Kat. A streak of blue light struck Kat and her eyes glowed for a moment before she smiled. "So Kat, what do you have to say for yourself?"

"How can I serve you Empress?" Kat asked eager to serve her Empress once again.

"Stay here while we take care of the two mini-brats that we've added to the dungeon," Zedd ordered as he, Rita, and Goldar left the throne room.

Kat relaxed in her position and then whorled around, pressing an invisible figure to the wall, "If you don't want to join your friends," she hissed, as the figure struggled in her grasp. "I suggest you stay here, and keep hidden, or I will hand you over to Rita and Zedd in a heartbeat," she threatened harshly.

"Why should I listen to you, you're evil, just like them," Trent growled back at her, struggling against her, but in his exhausted state, he couldn't fight back.

"You know what that is like don't you,?" She taunted, and turned her head, listening to the footsteps that neared the throne room, "Now shut up, and keep hidden, or you will join your friends in the dungeon," she said letting him go and returning to her position.

_What on earth is going on here, _Trent thought to himself as he did as she told him, staying hidden against the wall and listened to Rita and Zedd, plot with Kat, to bring down the rest of the rangers.

* * *

**Author's Note2:** E-cookies to whoever can guess what refrence to MMPRS3 I made during the fight. Ang, you can't play. LOL


	12. Chapter 12

**Author's Note:** Well… I'm back with another update. Thinks are sure heating up for the rangers aren't they?

* * *

"Katherine my dear, go back down to earth, slip back into the rangers and begin reporting to us what there plans are, Goldar will go with you to make your escape believable," Rita ordered.

"Yes Empress," she said bowing to her and heading over to Goldar. "Let's go," she said standing next to him.

"Don't tell me what to do," Goldar growled angrily. He didn't notice the invisible hand placed on his armor as he teleported out with Katherine.

* * *

Once back near Adam's place, Katherine broke away from Goldar and kicked him, "Leave me alone!" she screamed, kicking at him then running for Adam's place.

Jason was near the window, as the rangers were plotting a feasible way to get to the Moon Palace and get their friends and the Zeo crystal back. He looked out the window when he heard a faint scream. "Guys! It's Kat!"

"What?" Tommy and Rocky looked out the window. "She escaped! Goldar's after her, let's go!" Tommy exclaimed as they ran out off the house to confront him.

Goldar grabbed her, "Now I've got you again," he hissed.

"No you don't!" Jason yelled, running up to him in full on attack-mode.

Goldar threw Kat aside and began to fight with him. "Ow… bloody monkey," Kat grumbled as she stood up, then ran for the others.

Jason continued to battle with Goldar, and had leveled the monkey with a strong uppercut. Goldar pulled himself up and glared at all of them, "You haven't seen the last of me," he said teleporting away.

"Oh thank god, I thought he was going to catch me again," Kat said breathlessly.

"What happened?" Tommy asked holding her up as she caught her breath.

"I was in the throne room; I saw them take Kira, Conner, and Trent away to the dungeons. While Rita and Zedd were arguing over what to do with them, I managed to escape. Goldar came after me," Kat said looking around at them. "We've got to do something soon, I think they're going to destroy the kids," she said in a hurried tone.

"That's it… we've got to get up there, and get them before it happens." Adam exclaimed. "We can't let them hurt Catlin, Conner, Kira, or Trent," he said firmly.

"Let's go," Tommy said as they headed back into the house.

"Wait! Don't listen to her!" Trent yelled as he materialized next to them. "Rita and Zedd got to her! She's evil," he said glaring at her.

She hissed at him, her eyes flashing, "You bloody idiot," she spat, looking at the others who were staring at Trent in disbelief. "Don't listen to him, he's probably the evil one, they must have turned him after I escaped."

"Yeah, right, that's why you threatened to throw me into the dungeon if I didn't stay put," Trent retorted angrily.

"Yeah, well now I'm going to follow up on my threat," Kat hissed, lunging for him. He ducked but she came up behind him and put an arm around his throat. With the enhanced power Rita had bestowed upon her, she could easily subdue him that way.

"Kat? What's going on?" Tommy asked in shock.

"Rita's gotten to her," Jason growled. "Kat come on, you're one of us remember. A good guy," he tried to reason with her.

"Girl!" she retorted hotly, "Good girls never have any fun," she replied with a smirk. "You'll never beat Empress Rita and Lord Zedd Rangers, but it will be fun destroying you as you try," she hissed before disappearing in a flash with Trent.

"Dammit!" Jason swore, looking at Tommy, Rocky, and Adam who were outside with him. "We've got to act fast. What if she turns the kids against us too? Kira, Trent, and Conner all have powers now."

"Come on, let's get back inside, we didn't have much time before, we have even less now," Tommy said gravely.

* * *

Kat shoved Trent into the dungeon, "I told you to stay put… but you had to show up and bloody ruin everything. Now you don't have a choice, you HAVE to stay put," she said hotly.

"You'll never get away with this," Trent said angrily.

"Watch me," she hissed, her eyes glowing as she glared at him before storming back into the throne room.

"What happened?" Zedd demanded. "You were supposed to have stayed there and gotten information for us!"

"I'm sorry my lord, that Dino Thunder brat with the camouflage ability spied on us when you brought me back to the dark side, and then followed us back to Earth and ratted me out. He's in the dungeon now," Kat replied with a deep bow.

"Curses! This ruins everything! Now what are we going to do? The rangers will come here soon and we still don't have that blasted crystal shard!" Zedd cried enraged.

"Zeddy dear calm down, I have a plan," Rita replied with a smile.

"Ooh great, another one of your plans," Zedd mumbled.

"Shut up radiator face!" Rita shrieked. "Now… we can't take the shard from Catlin when she's unwilling. But we can take the shard from her willingly."

"And just HOW do you plan on getting her to give up the crystal willingly? Torture didn't work remember?" Zedd spat at her.

"Oh easy…" she said with a laugh, and pulled Katherine over to her and Zedd as she began to explain her plan. When she was finished she smiled evilly. "Well?"

"I knew somewhere in that empty head of yours, a good plan lurked, or should I say, a dastardly evil plan," Zedd said with a laugh.

"This will be too easy Empress. Too easy indeed," Katherine said with a laugh of her own as she turned to head towards the dungeons. "Catlin sweetie, that shard will soon belong to my Empress and Lord Zedd," she said to herself.

* * *

**Author's Note2:** What? You didn't think I would tell you the plan before the next chapter did you?


	13. Chapter 13

**Author's Note:** Quick Update, I couldn't leave you hanging that long with the dastardly evil plan. I'm nice. -evil laugh-

* * *

Catlin was sitting against the back wall of the dungeon, watching Kira, Conner, and Trent pace back and forth, "Would you guys sit down, you're making me dizzy," she complained shaking her head quickly. 

"How can you just sit there? We're locked up in a dungeon, Kat has gone evil on us, and we're on the freakin' moon!" Conner exclaimed.

"Nothing is as it seems, look, yes we're locked up in a dungeon but we COULD be hanging from chains over a fiery pit. We might be on the moon, but at least we're not stranded on some island in the middle of nowhere that is sinking to the depths. Kat might have gone evil on us, but at least she hasn't come here to destroy us," Catlin reasoned.

Kira, Conner and Trent looked at each other for a long moment. "She's got a point," Trent replied.

"Definitely, a sinking island," Conner said, shivering slightly at the thought. "An island is surrounded by water," he added.

"No shit Sherlock," Kira said rolling her eyes when Conner gave her a wounded look.

"Well, she got two out of the three points right," Kat said from where she was standing in front of the bars.

"Umm… which point is she wrong about?" Conner asked, shifting a bit nervously. "Please don't say the island one."

Kat rolled her eyes, _he's worse than Rocky, _she thought to herself. "No, she was right about that one, but that whole little speech about how I haven't come here to destroy you, sorry, she got that one wrong," she said walking into the dungeon.

"Kat, you don't want to do this, you're one of us, remember, that witch and the skinless guy have you brainwashed!" Kira said walking up to her, trying to reason with her.

"Sorry sweetie, it won't work," she said shoving her aside.

"What are you going to do to us?" Catlin asked, a slight waver in her tone.

"I'm going to bottle you up, and send you to the bottom of the Sea of Sorrow," she said with a sinister smile.

"I… umm… seas have water in them," Conner said raising his hand. "I…umm… I have a problem with that."

Kat mentally groaned, _no wonder Tommy said he aged 10 years working with these kids._ "I… don't care if you have a problem with it or not," she smiled at Catlin. "Unless…"

"Unless what," Catlin said rising to her feet.

"Fight me," Kat replied. "If you win, I spare you and your friends, if you lose, you hand over the crystal shard to me, and I spare you and your friends a wet, watery fate."

"Catlin, you can't do that," Trent said turning to her. "It's got to be some kind of trick!"

"Do I really have a choice? If I don't, we're doomed. I don't really like the name of that Sea, it can't be good," Catlin said firmly. She glared at Kat, "I'll fight you. Cleanly, no tricks."

"No tricks," Kat replied with a smirk. "Shall we?" She asked, pushing Trent and Conner aside.

Catlin took a fighting stance across from her, "You know Rocky and Uncle Adam trained me, I've nearly surpassed Rocky," she said rushing at her, a myriad of fists flying.

Kat gracefully moved backwards, blocking Catlin's fists grabbing an arm and dragging it across her body, dealing a blow to Catlin's chest, "You're also cocky," she replied, sweeping Catlin's feet out from under her.

"It's not cocky if it's the truth," Catlin countered, jumping back to her feet and launching a combo attack, hitting Kat quickly in the stomach and then following it up with a lightening fast side kick.

Kira watched them battle, both of them dealing harsh blows to the other, "Ya know, Catlin is really good. Rocky must have given her ranger training."

Conner nodded, "I wouldn't want to piss her off."

"You will anyway, because you're Conner," Trent remarked, wincing as Kat knocked Catlin off her feet. "Come on Catlin… get up," he said quietly, wondering if he should go camo and help her.

Kira looked over at Trent and put a hand on his wrist, "Stay put, if you try something, I think Catlin would give in, she specifically said no tricks," she said softly.

At that moment Catlin caught Kat's foot as she aimed a kick at her chest, "Whatcha gonna do now?" she asked with a smirk.

"This," Kat replied, jumping up and connecting her other foot to the side of Catlin's head taking her down. She followed it up, pinning her to the ground, "Do you yield?" she asked with a smirk.

Catlin gasped, wincing at the pain in her head. She looked up at her and nodded, "Yes… I yield," she said after a long, seemingly eternal moment of silence.

"Good," Kat said getting off her and pulling her to her feet. "The shard," she said holding her hand out.

"Catlin, no!" Kira gasped.

"I knew the stakes going into this Kira, we've got no choice," Catlin said taking the necklace off, handing it to Kat. "You know the others will stop you right?"

"Tonight my masters energize the Zeo Crystal, I'd love to see the rangers try to stop us after that happens," Kat said with a sinister laugh. As she walked out of the dungeon she looked over at the Dino Thunder kids, "Don't bother trying to use your communicators to reach the others, Rita and Zedd have the signal blocked," said over her shoulder before walking down the hallway.

"What are we going to do now?" Trent asked, looking at the others.

Catlin walked over to Trent and grabbed his wrist, "Rocky!! Uncle Adam!! Tanya!! Can you read us?" she called into his wrist, ignoring his protest.

_Rocky!! Uncle Adam!! Tanya!! Can you read us?_

Tommy about jumped out of his skin when his communicator went off. "What the…"

Adam's eyes got as wide a quarters and he lunged for Tommy's wrist, "Catlin!!"

* * *

**Author's Note2:** Are you confused yet? Huh…huh… are ya? –giggle- 


	14. Chapter 14

**Author's Note:** A liar and a thief? A thief and a liar? Maybe? Maybe not?

* * *

"Catlin! Are you okay? Are the Dino rangers with you?" Adam asked quickly. 

_We're all fine… ow! Conner don't smack me! Yes we're in a dungeon Conner! But we're not dead! Anyway… we're alright, but they have the crystal shard, and they're going to energize the Zeo Crystal tonight! Whatever you guys are planning on doing, do it soon. _

"Don't worry Catlin… we'll get you guys out of there," Adam said assuredly.

_Don't worry about us. Just get the crystal. Remember what I told you uncle, things aren't always as they seem, and that whole bit about your strongest enemy being yourself… oww Conner! I sware!! _

Her voice trailed off and some scuffling could be heard over the communicator, "Catlin! Catlin!" Adam cried in alarm.

_She's fine… she's kicking Conner's ass at the moment. Kat took the crystal from her; it was one hell of a battle. Just, hurry up and get up here, if not for our sakes, for the fact that I think Catlin's gonna kill Conner. _

Trent's voice picked up where Catlin's had trailed off. Adam groaned, "Tell her I said knock it off, and we'll get there as soon as we can."

"Try to stay out of trouble guys… please," Tommy added, running his hand over his face.

_Us? Trouble? We _never_ get into trouble Dr. O._

"So… looks like our plans just got finalized in a hurry," Rocky said bouncing a knee nervously as he sat on the couch. "So…"

"We have one small problem. How are we going to be able to land the Megaship close enough to the palace to get there before he can absorb the power of the Zeo Crystal? It's a given that he's going to be on the lookout for it. Kat's probably mentioned we have it, in fact, he knows all about us now, our element of surprise is gone," Andros put in with a sigh.

"Not necessarily," Justin said as he walked in the door. "Guess who just joined the party," he said, nodding out the door.

Tommy, Adam, and Rocky all hopped up and ran to the door. "A… jeep?" Tommy asked, a bit in disbelief. "No offense Justin… but…"

Andros cut him off as he looked outside, "Storm Blaster!" he exclaimed. "Justin, where'd you find him?"

Justin shrugged, "I was outside trying to calm down, and he just showed up. He knows when I need help," he said with a smile.

"I don't mean to sound confused here," Rocky stated, "But I'm really confused… how can a jeep, help us get to the moon?"

Justin scoffed, "He's no ordinary jeep. He's a sentient vehicle, he and Lightening Cruiser helped us Turbo Rangers with Divatox." Storm Blaster flashed his lights and revved his engine as if to agree with Justin. "Not only that," Justin said with a big grin, "He has my morpher, and it's online."

"You mean…" Adam gasped.

"You can morph," Tommy finished for him, his eyes wide with shock.

"Yup! Isn't that cool or what?" He said with a smirk, causing Tommy, Adam, and Tanya to groan.

"Some things never change," Tanya said with a laugh. "Okay, so now we have to ways to get to the moon. Now what?"

"We split up," Jason replied. "Some of us go in Storm Blaster, some of us go in the Megaship, Storm Blaster is smaller, and can get closer, and then they can infiltrate the palace and cause a distraction, allowing Andros to set the Megaship down without commotion."

"Excellent plan, now who's doing what," Tommy said looking around.

"I think Rocky, Ethan and I should go in Storm Blaster," Justin responded. "It's a small number, but we can do major damage. Rocky and I are experts in our skills, and Ethan's got his dino gem power. Plus, Storm Blaster's got an affinity for us Blue Rangers," he added with a grin.

"A sentient vehicle, I get to RIDE in a sentient vehicle, I'm totally buggin, " Ethan exclaimed with what Conner called his 'geeked out' grin.

"Objections?" Tommy asked. When no one shook there head he nodded, "Great… we're good to go then. Ethan, your communicator works, you keep in contact with me on the Megaship, if anything goes wrong, let us know."

"You got it Dr. O," Ethan replied with a nod.

"Let's do it," Tommy said as they all headed for the door. "May the power protect us all."

* * *

Trent and Kira sat next to each other in the dungeon, watching Catlin and Conner beat the hell out of each other, "I wish we had popcorn," Kira said with a sigh, laying her head on his shoulder. 

"You think we should stop them?" Trent asked as Conner cried out _No… not there… don't hit me there!! _

"Do we have to?" Kira asked listening to them as Catlin shrieked _Did you just hit my breast? You don't hit women in their breasts! It's not nice! _

"I think we might need too, we're gonna need all of us at full potential when Dr. O and his friends bust us out, and an injured Conner would be bad, besides, I think Dr. O would be mad that we just sat there and watched." Trent said with a sigh and got up, picking Catlin up off of Conner. "Alright easy tiger… we need him at full strength when we bust out of this place, besides, your Uncle Adam said to behave."

Catlin sighed, "But I was having fun," she said moving off to the side of the dungeon as Conner got up. "You need to learn how to fight," she said as she glared at him.

"I didn't mean to hit you there! I didn't have anywhere else to hit!" Conner retorted. "I still want to know HOW exactly are we alright? We're locked in the dungeon, they have the crystal shard, and if that freaky metal head dude gets that Zeo Crystal or whatever, we're toast."

"Because we have this," Catlin said pulling a metal key out of her pocket.

"What?"

"Is that the?" Kira asked in shock.

"That is not the key to the dungeon," Trent said in disbelief.

Catlin grinned, "Yeah, it is. So we wait a bit, give the others a chance to get up here, then we take our happy lil' behinds out of the dungeon and we take the enemy by surprise."

"How the hell did you get that?" Conner asked.

Catlin smirked, "A girl has to have _some _secrets now, doesn't she?"

* * *

**Author's Note2**: If anybody can guess how Catlin got the key, they win the internets. 


	15. Chapter 15

**Author's Note:** Update time! After a long, LONG, thorough discussion with the voices… I mean muses; we've come to an acceptable course of action.

* * *

In the throne room of the Moon Palace, Lord Zedd stepped away from the now completely Zeo crystal, it had taken more energy than he'd thought to reconfigure the crystal into a whole. If he had a brow, he would be covered with sweat. "Rita! We're ready to proceed, now, it is time to power the crystal, and have our revenge!" He exclaimed, holding a hand out to her.

Rita looked over at Kat, who was maintaining an at-rest position next to Goldar. "You two! Stay out of our way until we're finished, we don't need you interfering," she shrieked as she stepped over to Lord Zedd. "Now, let's get this show on the road," she said lowering her wand, aiming it at the crystal.

Lord Zedd growled as he did the same with his staff, "It is time," he said sinisterly, firing a bright beam of energy at the crystal, Rita doing the same. He kept his focus on the Zeo Crystal, watching it glow brighter and brighter as their energies roused the dormant energy inherent inside the crystal, "Yes! It's working! Yes!!" Zedd cried in excitement. Very soon, he'd have the power he needed to complete his revenge.

Kat watched in awe as the crystal pulsed with energy. She gasped aloud as colors began to swirl around it, Red, Blue, Green, Yellow and Pink. They were doing, they were reactivating the Zeo Crystal, once thought of as the most powerful source of energy in the universe. "Amazing," she whispered softly.

* * *

"This is so amazing. I can't believe it!" Ethan exclaimed as they flew through space, heading towards the moon. He'd been saying that since they'd taken off.

"You are like a broken record man," Rocky said with a laugh, though he was in just as much awe as Ethan. "But I will admit this is amazing."

Justin laughed, "It is, isn't it," he said as he calmly let Storm Blaster set its own course to the moon. He sighed, with as calm as it was out here in space, Rocky and Ethan, one could almost forget what they were planning on doing. "Alright, when we get there, we'll have to find a way to sneak into the palace, and then distract Rita and Zedd until the others get there; I don't think Ethan and I should morph unless it's absolutely necessary."

Ethan nodded, "I agree, considering we're not even sure IF I can morph, I'd rather wait till it was absolutely necessary, preferably after the others get there."

Rocky pointed, "There's the palace guys, Storm Blaster, set us down as close as you can without setting off any alarms," he said patting the jeeps door. Storm Blaster let out an odd revving sound that could be taken as an agreement.

* * *

Trent and Kira stared at Catlin who, for the last half hour, had been meditating in the corner of their dungeon. Conner was pacing back and forth in front of the bars, itching to be out of there. He stopped and stared at her, "What is she doing?" He asked, crossing his arms and leaning back against the bars of their cell. "We have the key; we should be busting out of this place, and getting that crystal back! Why are we waiting?"

Catlin opened her eyes, startling all three of them, "We're waiting because timing is critical, we have to let them recharge the Zeo Crystal to full power, and then we can get it back. What good would a dead crystal be to us?"

"What if they recharge it and then harness its energy? We'd be toast," Conner replied pushing off the bars to begin pacing again.

"I hate to say this, I REALLY do," Kira started, "but Conner has a point," she said as she watched him pace.

"Once they charge the Zeo Crystal, they won't have the energy left TO harness its powers; that is our advantage. After it's charged, Zedd will probably need at least an hour to recoup his energies to harness it," Catlin said as she stood up.

"How on earth do you know all this?" Trent asked incredulously.

Catlin smiled, "My giant, blue, floating head of a mentor," she replied as she walked up to the bars and pushed Conner aside non-to-gently. "It's time to roll," she said unlocking the door. "Let's move out."

"Did she just say…" Kira trailed off, looking at Trent.

"Don't think about it, it'll just make your head hurt," Trent advised as they followed Catlin out of the dungeon.

* * *

Adam paced inside the Megaship, which was hovering a fair distance away from the Moon Palace, "What's taking them so long? What if Zedd's already harnessed the energy? Why hasn't Ethan contacted us?" He asked sighing in frustration. He hated waiting, he hated not knowing if his niece was okay, he hated not knowing if any of them were okay.

"Adam, you need to calm down, you're tense as hell, that won't help us any," Tanya said walking up to him and putting a hand on his shoulder to stop his pacing. "Ethan will contact us once they are inside the Palace, and the kids have their communicators, they'd call us if something was about to happen.

"I know," he said softly. "But…"

_Dr. O, its Ethan. We're inside the Palace now. Give us 5 minutes and you can set her down and make your way in. _

Tommy looked around to the group, "Gotcha Ethan. You guys be careful."

_I know, I know, 'Be careful, but get it done' _Ethan's voice came back over the communicator.

"Aw, our Tommy is all grown up, no more reckless encounters with the enemy," Jason teased, ducking a mimed blow from his friend.

Tommy looked around his friends again, "Crunch time, are we ready guys?"

"Let's do it," Adam said firmly, cracking his knuckles and shaking out his arms to loosen his tense muscles.

* * *

Justin peered around the corner into the throne room, "I see Zedd, Rita, and Kat. Which means Monkey-Boy is unaccounted for."

"I'm not sure I like that," Rocky whispered to him, peeking above his head into the room. He saw Kat and Rita huddled together and his blood ran cold, he hoped they could break the spell on Kat before one of them had to do make a decision that they would never be able to live with.

"Where is that flying gold freak?" Ethan asked nervously.

"Where do you think, you insolent fools?" Goldar's voice roared behind them.

"You had to ask, didn't you," Rocky said as the three of them turned around, coming face to face with their unaccounted for enemy.

"Prepare to meet your doom!" Goldar growled menacingly, drawing his sword out. "Attack!" He yelled, lunging at the three rangers.

* * *

**Author's Note2:** Again, my apologies about the lengthy time between updates. I hope you haven't lost interest. As always, let me know what you think. 


	16. Chapter 16

**Author's Note:** Wow… it's been way to long since I've updated The Return, I almost considered putting this story on hiatus, but I was struck with inspiration. I hope to be more regular with updates, but I can't make any promises. I hope y'all haven't given up on this story.

* * *

"_Attack!"_

"If you insist," Rocky smirked as Goldar charged at him, ducking under Goldar's sword and punching him in the chest, then rolling away. "Guys, triangle formation if you can do it," he said watching as Justin flipped over Goldar to cover the second point to the side of the gold monkey.

"Why am I up front," Ethan moaned, crossing his arms to block a blow from Goldar's sword, one that would have probably cut his arms clean off if it hadn't been for his Gem powers.

"That's why," Justin said as he and Rocky landed kicked to Goldar's sides, causing him to spin around to try and face them. "Where's my girlfriend you golden freak?" Justin said attempting to kick Goldar's legs out from under him.

"I'll destroy her, after I'm finished with you power-punks," Goldar roared, kicking Justin against the wall.

Rita looked out into the hallway just then, wondering at the commotion, "Zeddy! Those power brats are here! We have to DO something!" She shrieked, pointing at the doorway.

"Katherine, take the putties and go help that brass plated imbecile," Zedd ordered, resting against his staff. Charging the crystal had taken more out of him than he'd hoped, even with Rita's contributions.

"Yes milord," Kat said heading out into the hallway, "Putties, attack!" She cried, rushing into the battle herself, setting her sights on Rocky. "Hello Rocky," she said with a smile before kicking him into the wall.

"What a wonderful way to say hello," Rocky groaned ducking under one of her fists. "Couldn't you have tried a handshake or something," he asked blocking her kicks. He was going to play strict defense here, this was a fellow ranger.

"But this is much more fun," Kat responded with a fierce roundhouse kick, which Rocky was barely able to block.

Ethan meanwhile was dealing with putties; during a slightly lull he grabbed his communicator, "Guys… anytime you wanna get here, would be good, ya know… like NOW!" he yelled, groaning as he was punched backwards by a Putty.

* * *

Tommy and the others had just set down the Megaship when Ethan's frantic cry for help came over his communicator. "Time to roll guys, let's be careful…" 

Jason cut him off, smacking him on the should, "But lets get it done, aww… Mr. Responsible," he said with a laugh. "Let's do it guys, once a ranger…"

"Always a ranger," the others responded as they ran off the ship and headed for the Moon Palace.

Once inside the palace, Tommy took point, scouting the hallways ahead of the others. As the only ranger in their group who had ever been inside the palace, he was the logical choice. He peered around a corner and saw a group of putties, and in their midst was Goldar, fighting Ethan and Justin, while Kat was seemingly pummeling Rocky, who was still playing strictly defensive with her. Tommy waved the others to him. "Plan?" He asked them.

"It's not like we can surround them," Tanya pointed out wincing as Kat knocked Rocky to his knees with a kick to the chest.

"There's no place to hide in this hallway either," Andros pointed out, contemplating the scenario in front of him.

"Well, looks like there is only one thing to do," Jason said bouncing a little on the balls of his feet, loosening up his muscles for the impending battle.

"We rush em'," Adam said firmly. "We hit them point blank, over power them, then bust into the throne room and get the Zeo Crystal, and take out Zedd and Rita, then get my niece and the others outta here." His face was hard at the thought of what his niece had gone through because of association with him.

"Let's do it," Tommy said, taking off down the hallway, the others hot in his heels as they rushed into the fray of Putties.

"It's about time!" Ethan grumbled as Goldar knocked him into the wall. "Will you just…" he used both of his arms to double punch Goldar in the chest, "stay down!" He yelled, watching Goldar hit the ground hard.

* * *

As the battle moved into the throne room itself, Kat wound up squaring off against Adam. She ducked under a powerful kick and managed to use his momentum to knocked him off balance, "What's the matter Adam? Getting old?" She taunted, rolling out of the way of another kick. 

"Where's my niece?" He asked angrily, trying in vain to keep his emotions in check, he knew they were getting the best of him, but he was hard pressed to stop them. Playing over and over in his head were visions of what could have possibly happened to his niece.

"Oooh I'm sure Catlin is enjoying herself," Kat said with a smirk. "Of course, it is rather damp at the bottom of the Sea of Sorrow," she said with a laugh. "At least she had those mini-rangers to keep her company."

* * *

**Author's Note2:** I'm sorry this is a short chapter, but it was an action packed one, which I hope makes up for its length. Are y'all confused yet? LOL 


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